After an atmospheric spookshow intro, Canadian death cult Duskwalker unleash the “Shadowcreeper” music video from the haunted basement of their All They Know is Fear LP. After drummer Cale Costello summons listeners with a lethal drum roll, the song quickly lunges for the kill. Vocalist Joey Scaringi’s rasped snarls and growls accompany blastbeats until the mid-song breakdowns syncopate with the Shadowcreeper’s violent pursuit. Once guitarist John Robinson’s sharpened solo starts stabbing, the finale seems written in blood. There’s no happy ending here, just melodic death metal that balances brutality and infectious grooves.
From the first VCR flicker, Rabidog Films nail the thrill of finding a rare oddity in the local video store (RIP). The video of “Shadowcreeper” boasts the bold colors of Dario Argento’s giallos and Jean Rollins’ psychosexual vamp films. Once the action cuts to the band’s performance, the fog-drenched space feels like Duskwalker is conjuring the entity stalking the video’s protagonist. Rabidog director/producer “Cannibal” Cam Schwarz recently talked with Decibel‘s Editor-in-Chief Albert Mudrian about death metal as production continues on his The Growl documentary, so he knows his shit. Rabidog founder and “Shadowcreeper” editor Phil Pattison also directed VS. THE DEAD, a zombie romp soaked with metal and hardcore jams. So the extreme metal bloodlines run deep with Rabidog.
Watch the “Shadowcreeper” music video below and scroll further for thoughts from Duskwalker. But first, venture into the shadows and press play NOW.
Interview with Duskwalker
What about “Shadowcreeper” made it the perfect song on the record for a music video?
Duskwalker: “Shadowcreeper” is fast and upbeat. It continually drives forward and represents the extreme side of our material. It’s got groove, blasts and some badass riffs. Lyrically the song depicts our fascination of real accounts with shadow people. Throw in some occult themes and you’ve got a great song for a metal video. The video accompanies the song perfectly. It was awesome to create a character for the video The Shadowcreeper played by our friend and fellow musician Sam Crowley. The entire shoot was a thrill with Rabidog Films.
Was there a goal to change the band’s sound in any way when you switched names from The offering to Duskwalker in 2018?
D: After changing to Duskwalker we got a new vocalist (Joey Scaringi) whose approach is very guttural. He’s an abrasive sonuva bitch. We let him focus on keeping things heavy while the rest of the band dabbled in some clean vocals. We write together in the jam space, bouncing ideas off each other. Most songs are written by guitarist (John Robinson) and drummer (Cale Costello) with bassist (Matt Grabon) keeping an ear for quality control. We knew it was going to be more brutal but we like mixing in atmospheric shit too. Our objective was to make an album that pulls you in beginning to end.
What are some horror films that have inspired you lyrically for the band?
D: The Twilight Zone, The Thing, X-Files, fucking Dracula, Tales From The Crypt, The Shining, Creepshow, Event Horizon, From Beyond, Evil Dead, Re-animator, Dead Alive, Alien, so many more. Among horror, conspiracies, urban legends and cryptozoology make for great subject matter. Anything messed up with a chance of being true is horrifying, so there should be a metal song about it.
Are you working on any new music since the release of All They Know is fear last year? How are you spending time during the pandemic?
D: Yes, we already have a few songs in the works and some covers. Our mindset for the next album is to be straight forward and slamming. We are isolating and emailing scratch tracks. Just taking one day at a time and unfortunately cancelling shows as dates approach. Praying to the metal gods the travel ban is lifted in September and we can play Full Terror Assault open air with Gwar, Exodus and M.O.D.
Interview with Phil Pattison of Rabidog Films
What are some of the inspirations that inform the video’s style?
Pattison: As fan boys of old school horror, some of our favorite films where shot on shoe string budgets so we just apply the same process as our mentors did and keep it simple. Many of the projects that we produce/direct are void of any substantial funds so we try to be as creative within the parameters presented to us. Locations are definitely key to making your project look bigger. We have been fortunate enough to be able to find backdrops for our projects that cost very little to no money. As was the case for the “Shadowcreeper” video. We were granted access to a historical building here in the Niagara region that is home to a local rock radio station, 97.7 HTZ FM, which allowed us to create a simple but very effective narrative. Also as editors, we are able to see how each scene will cut into the next even before we shoot a single frame. In that respect, we are also able to apply a lot of creativity in post-production. Basically, we shot “Shadowcreeper” as a short film then edited in the band footage in as if it was part of a soundtrack for a bigger movie.
What first captured your attention about Duskwalker’s music?
P: Simple… Duskwalker is tight and heavy as fuck! It also helps that they are also old school horror fanboys which reflects in their subject matter. Rabidog Films inception was built on the extreme music scene. Our first film was called VS. THE DEAD which we produced back in 2004 (Eventually released on DVD 2009). The small budget for this film was solely raised on a series of punk rock/hardcore/metal shows featuring bands such as Haymaker, Left for Dead, Alexisonfire, Fucked Up and many more. The film’s soundtrack also features some heavy hitting music from Integrity, Zyklon, Red Harvest, and The Dayglo Abortions just to name a few. Over the years we have continued to work with many other acts in the extreme and rock music scene such as Fuck the Facts, Threat Signal, Teenage Head, Monster Truck and more. Most recently we co-produced/shot/edited a feature film called Necropolis: Legion for the legendary Full Moon Features which was released this past December on Amazon Prime, Hulu and other streaming platforms. Needless to say, our passion lays in heavy music and horror so working with Duskwalker was a natural fit.
Order Duskwalker’s All They Know is Fear from their website HERE
Follow Duskwalker on Facebook for news and updates HERE
And follow Rabidog Films for updates on The Growl and other productions HERE
